Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge (formerly known as Exploreans Ngorongoro Lodge) nestles within a short distance of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in 50 acres of private, virgin wilderness. A four to five hour road trip from Arusha depending on morning traffic bypassing Lake Manyara ending with a 30 minutes’ drive to the Ngorongoro Crater floor from the lodge, it is a strategically placed base for a northern circuit safari vacation in Tanzania. A few miles away, our ancestors began found their beginnings, in the Olduvai Gorge, almost two million years ago. If you are traveling in Africa to find your true self, you can do it with style on an Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge safari, combining exhilarating game-viewing in the Ngorongoro Crater with the sophisticated and discerning accommodation style desired by adventurous AfricanMecca guests in the 21st century. The crater, actually a collapsed volcanic caldera, forms a protective barrier two thousand feet high around a cauldron ten miles across, teeming with thousands of bearded wildebeest, gazelles, zebra and buffalo with their hundreds of feline and canine predators, scavenging hyenas, jackals, and vultures, and 500 forms of beautiful and peculiar avian life. If you have extra travel days in Africa, head out to offbeat lakes of the East and West in the Great African Rift Valley i.e. Lake Natron and Lake Eyasi, both shallow, seasonal lakes with high levels of salinity. Amazingly, some tilapia fish survive around the hot springs which feed Lake Natron; the lake is so toxic that endangered Lesser Flamingos on the central islands can rear young in safety in their only permanent breeding ground on earth. The lake blooms spectacularly red and orange with phototropic bacteria (read more on nearby attractions around Ngorongoro). End your stay at Neptune Ngorongoro by getting pampered at its Mvua African Rain Spa where you can relax your mind, soul and body in Africa.

Accommodation At Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge

20 impressively spacious, thatched log cabins offer unexpectedly luxurious individual cottage-style accommodation comprising of a lounge and bedroom with common central open fireplace and en-suite bathrooms with solar hot water, double vanity units in front of huge, wood-framed mirror, toilet, bidet, walk-in showers and a hair dryer. Fine toiletries and bathrobes are also provided. Each suite contains a King size four-poster, mosquito-netted bed and two day beds. Extra beds can be provided if required for families on their African safari. Mosquito nets are more decorative than functional at this altitude, where mosquitoes are rarely a nuisance. As a whimsical touch, “Do not disturb” hangers depict a sleeping lion. Who knows? Perhaps your Africa holiday experiencewill awaken your own, internal, sleeping big cat. The vast, but comfortable lounge is decorated with ethnic spears and shields over the open hearth which forms a warming focal point on chilly evenings. Here, you will find a digital safe, facilities for making fine Tanzanian tea and coffee, a mini bar, telephone, and WiFi internet connection. A large, tree-shaded, stilted, private verandah faces immaculate gardens with crazy paving walkways and panoramic views of lushly forested valleys and distant blue escarpments of the volcanic uplands. A lounge, library, drug store, and boutique are to be found at the main lodge, with 24 hour reception. Laundry and valet services are available as well as baby-sitting by prior arrangement via AfricanMecca.

Safari At Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge

At Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge, you can opt to relax on a sundeck lounger by the swimming pool or sample the Mvua African Rain Spa with treatments and massage, to calm the mind and rejuvenate your body after the exertions on your Tanzanian tour adventures. You could choose a guided nature walk or visit a native village or a coffee plantation. But the most popular Tanzanian vacation activity is a Ngorongoro Crater trip with a knowledgeable and expert AfricanMecca guide who will help you to cram every moment of your six-hour permitted stay with viewing the vast moving tapestry of animal life that makes this UNESCO credited World Heritage Site the eighth wonder of the natural world. As you approach the main crater gate, your guide will be in enthusiastic radio communication with other guides to share and plan the best route for you with the least crater traffic based on “latest fauna intelligence” to satisfy the objectives you have discussed on the approach drive. There will be lucky opportunities to see ivory tusked elephants, black mane lion stalking on the plains, rare black rhino wandering on the forest edge, pink flamingos standing, stilt-legged in the central Magadi lake, quarrelsome hyenas and vultures fighting over the carcass of an unfortunate zebra or wildebeest, or spot the strutting secretary bird, surreal hamerkop or their hundreds of avian relatives, many of them miniature jewels: your success is virtually assured in this densely packed treasury of almost every animal to be found on tour in Africa (read more on wildlife experiences on the Ngorongoro Crater floor).

Dining At Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge

Most of the food and drink served at Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge is grown on their own farm or locally sourced in support of Ngorongoro Conservation Area policy to integrate eco-tourism into the development of indigenous communities and wildlife protection initiatives. A choice of healthy buffet selections or a la carte breakfast is available in the Acacia Restaurant, or you can follow early morning tea or coffee with a dawn drive with your AfricanMecca guide in a customized, four-wheel drive vehicle en route to your almost obligatory, magical, game-watching tour of Ngorongoro Crater, carrying a picnic lunch to relish in the crater. A la carte lunch is served to time at the lodge so, on your return from your Tanzanian safari activity, you can take the afternoon tea in the lounge, on the pool deck, or terrace, before sundowners in the well-stocked Zebra Bar, or by a traditional campfire. Once a week, dinner is served around the heated swimming pool. By arrangement, sundowners and bush dinners may be taken at special sites within the lodge grounds to give an authentic African safari ambience. At all other times, the Acacia Restaurant presents a formal, candle-lit, a la carte menu of Mediterranean, European dishes and local cuisine in the enormous vaulted dining room with wood paneled roof and stone clad walls.

ZANZIBAR ISLAND & BEACH GUIDE

Jambo Raza, The safari trip in Tanzania was terrific - Ngorongoro and Serengeti. Our guide, Rodgers is a gem - smart, funny, knowledgeable and always interested in us and our journey. Great guy. We would all recommend your group to our friends.

Robert J Hartman, Esq - Minnesota, United States

AfricanMecca's professionalism and care understands that what distinguishes Africa is its authenticity, the land, people and wildlife who do not share our world of fashion and fanfare that distinguish so many travel companies today.

I can't thank AfricanMecca Safaris and everybody that I met as part of my African Safari enough for the most incredible and unforgettable vacation of my life. The lodge at Ngorongoro Crater and Kirawira Camp in the Serengeti were magnificent.

Dr Edda Gomez-Panzani - California, United States

I booked my safari holiday through AfricanMecca. They were the most helpful company I have ever dealt with and I work within the travel industry. I had the most amazing time. The holiday went as clockwork with no hitches anywhere.

Shelley Roberts - Hemel Hempstead, United Kingdom

The AfricanMecca Safari experience was great. All the connections were spot on and the lodges and camps were great - 1st class. The safaris were great with the time spent in Ngorongoro totally outstanding. We just totally loved it, a great experience.

Bruce and Susie Ironside - New Zealand

We took our decision on an extended and complex safari through AfricanMecca Safaris. They did a flawless job across the board. We traveled through Zanzibar (fantastic) Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater, and Serengeti without a hitch.

AfricanMecca Safaris created a remarkable honeymoon tailored to our interests and desires. The quality of service and delivery of experience was unsurpassed. I highly recommend AfricanMecca Safaris to honeymooners, families, or any traveler.

Noorin & Jason Nelson - Maryland, United States

Raza - I have to congratulate you. We had an absolutely wonderful trip - lifetime for me. All of your personnel in Africa were pleasant, positive. Ngorongoro Crater Lodge were incredibly beautiful and luxurious and Kusini Camp – Serengeti.

Mike and Ann Rosenblum - Illinois, United States

When staying at Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge near Ngorongoro Crater - Highlands (Karatu Farmlands), we recommend combining your safari with a visit to Serengeti, Tarangire & Lake Manyara. You may optionally extend out to Southern Tanzania, and experience the off-beat wilderness areas of Ruaha & Selous ending with a beach vacation and Swahili cultural tour in the exotic spice island of Zanzibar.